Hasta La Gadget!

Official Android screen mirroring for Chromecast looks to be fast approaching, with signs of code supporting the display option spotted among recent Android 4.4.1 patches. The ability to stream content locally from any Android device to a Chromecast plugged into a TV or display was unofficially hacked into the dongle early on, but Google banned […]

Fans of the BBC series Sherlock have been clamoring to see what happens in the new season of the show, since the last season ended with the tragic demise of Sherlock Holmes. Or did it? Now, the premiere date for the new season of the show was tipped in an interesting way.

A hearse was hired to drive around with a flower arrangement in its glass windows. Those flowers spelled out “SHERLOCK” and the date “01-01-14.” Of course, the new season will air on January 1 (at least in the UK). It’s also telling that the season premiere is titled “An Empty Hearse.”

The hearse also had a hashtag on one window that read #sherlocklives. Actor mark Gatiss also tweeted to fans that they should look out for the vehicle. Gattis wrote, “Should you be around Baker St, Gower St or even Bart’s tomorrow morning, look out for a certain vehicle containing special news…#Sherlock.”

Fans looking forward to the next Sherlock episode here in the US will have to wait until January 19th, 2013 for its premiere on PBS.

[Twitter via Nerd Approved]

The Xbox One arrives with a 500GB HDD built-in, and in contrast to the PlayStation 4’s easily-accessed storage, it’s not meant to be accessed or replaced by the user, ever. While we’ll probably leave ours in place to keep from voiding the warranty or risk a ban from Xbox Live, a few folks have already cracked open the console to see what else will fit. iFixit noted during its teardown that there’s an off-the-shelf 2.5-inch Samsung HDD inside connected via SATA II inside, and swapping that out isn’t much of an issue. Brian Williams has already tried out the system with two alternate drives: a 500GB Samsung EVO SSD, and a Seagate 1TB hybrid SSHD. As you can see in his video (embedded after the break) boot time from off to the dashboard only improved slightly, with the SSD loading in 46.1 seconds compared to 50.5 stock. A test with Call of Duty: Ghosts revealed similar results, with the SSD loading up in 27 seconds and the hybrid drive close behind in 27.7, compared to 33.5 seconds stock. We’ll need tests with more games to be sure, but so far it’s not showing the improvements seen after swapping the PS4’s hard drive out for speedier options. The folks at Tested report doing so improved level load times in Killzone: Shadow Fall from 60 seconds to 39 seconds.

So, if it’s not a ton faster, why would you want to take the chance of prying Microsoft’s box open? To get more space. Brian’s drives were simply copies of the original transferred by Clonezilla, but an individual named Juvenal1 has already worked out how to get the system to actually recognize and make use of drives bigger than 500GB. By copying files from your original drive and using their Linux-compatible tool to repartition the new HDD, you can be up and running with more capacity after just a reboot or two. Of course, this carries significant risks and we don’t recommend it for most, as Microsoft’s Albert Penello has already revealed support for external drives is coming in a future update, along with the ability to do crazy things like see how much storage you actually have left. Still, if you just need to live on the edge (or store every game released so far and record hours of clean Upload Studio clips) the instructions can be found here.

Update: If you’re interested in performing the upgrade, Brian Williams has followed with a video walkthrough for the process of properly formatting a larger hard drive, even if you’re not familiar with using Linux.

Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD, Microsoft

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Source: Juvenal1 (Github), Brian Williams

Brits can’t really complain about Freeview TV since it comes at no recurring charge, but it doesn’t stop them tiring of the channel selection. Those who also aren’t interested in signing on the dotted line with the likes of Virgin, Sky or YouView now have another way to perhaps cure their programming apathy with VuTV. Launched today, the new service adds 13 channels to compatible Freeview-equipped TVs or set-top boxes for a fee of £7 per month (no extended commitment necessary). VuTV manages to add these new channels via a selection screen hosted within a single Freeview channel, Inception-style. While it sounds like a fair deal, we’re far from convinced it’s worth the money, unless you’re into MTV-made reality shows or have a house full of children to keep entertained. Then again, Comedy Central is a good pick-up on VuTV’s part, and you can always take the two-week trial before throwing down any cash. Full channel list after the break.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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CNET

Source: VuTV (Twitter), VuTV (website)

Paramount Digital Entertainment has launched the classiest mobile game ever conceived. The game is called Anchorman 2: Scotchy Scotch Toss and it’s the “greatest app n the history of western civilization.” The point of the game is to toss ice cubes into Ron’s glass of scotch.

The game has over 300 one-liners recorded by Will Ferrell as Ron Burgundy. You can play against the computer (Ron) or play against friends. The game has four locations that are from the new film, including Ron’s RV, the Channel 4 News desk, Tino’s Jazz Bar and Ron’s apartment.

The game is available for iOS users for 99 cents on the App Store, and an Android version is coming soon.

“This game combines my two favorite things, scotch and playful exchanges with total strangers,” said Ron Burgundy.